System and method for detecting inappropriate content in virtual worlds

ABSTRACT

A system for detecting inappropriate content in a virtual world environment has, and a corresponding method utilizes, a rating unit for rating each of one or more virtual objects based upon its content. The system has, and the method utilizes, a tagging unit for tagging each of the one or more virtual objects with its respective rating, an object tagging database for storing ratings of the one or more virtual objects, and a policy database for storing policies associated with the ratings and the regions. Further the system has, and the method utilizes, an object monitor for monitoring the movement of each of the one or more virtual objects, a security scanner for scanning each of the one or more virtual objects to determine the rating of each of the one or more virtual objects, and an enforcement module to enforce the policies of the policy database based upon the rating and the respective region.

RELATED U.S. APPLICATION DATA

The present patent document is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 12/326,228, filed Dec. 2, 2008, entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FORDETECTING INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT IN VIRTUAL WORLDS”, the disclosure ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present invention provide a system and method fordetecting inappropriate content in virtual worlds. An embodiment of thepresent invention identifies objects and content that are inappropriatein a virtual world, in a specific region within a virtual world, or inany given area within a virtual region such as at a beach or in abuilding.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With the growing popularity of virtual worlds and the influx of newresidents of all ages and dispositions, it is important to have controlsin place so as not to expose inappropriate or offensive content tojuveniles or to adults who do not wish to view such content. Virtualworlds may have regions and areas that are specifically designed foradults who are interested in a variety of mature subject matters. Insuch regions, it is possible for an avatar to purchase content andobjects that are only suitable for interested adults, and that shouldnot be taken into neutral or family-friendly regions and areas. Suchitems include objects that may be morally offensive such as items of aprurient nature or those that depict gang association and the like. Somemay be audibly offensive such as music with explicit lyrics, whileothers may be visually offensive such as inappropriate clothing,appearance, gestures, and actions. There is a need for a system andmethod to identify such items and prohibit the carrying or using of suchitems outside of specific areas and regions, such as mature areas andregions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In general, aspects of the present invention provide a system and amethod for identifying and controlling mature and otherwiseinappropriate content and objects in a virtual world, and moreparticularly, in regions or areas of a virtual world where such contentis not permitted.

One embodiment of the present invention is a method for identifyingvirtual objects having inappropriate content in a virtual universe (VU)having one or more regions, the VU having virtual objects, each of thevirtual objects having content, the method comprising: rating eachvirtual object with a maturity rating based upon the content of eachvirtual object, wherein the maturity rating for each virtual object isgenerated upon initial creation of each virtual object; tagging eachvirtual object with the maturity rating; receiving a plurality ofmaturity ratings for each virtual object from a set of avatars withinthe VU; tagging each virtual object with an updated maturity rating;monitoring movement of each virtual object within the VU; scanning aninventory of the avatar to determine the maturity rating of each virtualobject in response to a movement of the avatar from a first region ofthe one or more regions having a first associated maturity level to asecond region of the one or more regions having a second associatedmaturity level; and determining whether to restrict movement of eachvirtual object of the inventory to the second region by enforcing apolicy restricting movement of a rated virtual object between regions,the determining based upon the maturity rating of each virtual objectand the maturity rating of the second region.

Another embodiment of the present invention is a system for identifyingvirtual objects having inappropriate content in a virtual universe (VU),the VU having virtual objects, the VU further having one or moreregions, the system comprising: a VU processing unit; a memory unitoperably associated with the VU processing unit; an object managementtool storable in the memory unit and executable by the VU processingunit, the object management tool comprising: a rating unit configuredfor rating each virtual object with a maturity rating based upon acontent of each virtual object, wherein the maturity rating for eachvirtual object is generated upon initial creation of each virtualobject; a tagging unit configured for: tagging each virtual object withthe maturity rating; receiving a plurality of maturity ratings for eachvirtual object from a set of avatars within the VU; and tagging eachvirtual object with an updated maturity rating; an object monitorconfigured for monitoring movement of each virtual object within the VU;a security scanner configured for scanning an inventory of the avatar todetermine the maturity rating of each virtual object in response to amovement of the avatar from a first region of the one or more regionshaving a first associated maturity level to a second region of the oneor more regions having a second associated maturity level; and anenforcement module configured for determining whether to restrictmovement of each virtual object of the inventory to the second region byenforcing a policy restricting movement of a rated virtual objectbetween regions, the determining based upon the maturity rating of eachvirtual object and the maturity rating of the second region.

In still another embodiment, the present invention provides acomputer-readable storage device storing computer instructions, whichwhen executed, enables a system comprising a processing unit, a memory,a bus, and one or more input/output (I/O) interfaces to implement amethod for identifying virtual objects having inappropriate content in avirtual universe (VU) having one or more regions, the VU having virtualobjects, each of the virtual objects having content, the computerinstructions comprising: rating each virtual object with a maturityrating based upon the content of each virtual object, wherein thematurity rating for each virtual object is generated upon initialcreation of each virtual object; tagging each virtual object with thematurity rating; receiving a plurality of maturity ratings for eachvirtual object from a set of avatars within the VU; tagging each virtualobject with an updated maturity rating; monitoring movement of eachvirtual object within the VU; scanning an inventory of the avatar todetermine the maturity rating of each virtual object in response to amovement of the avatar from a first region of the one or more regionshaving a first associated maturity level to a second region of the oneor more regions having a second associated maturity level; anddetermining whether to restrict movement of each virtual object of theinventory to the second region by enforcing a policy restrictingmovement of a rated virtual object between regions, the determiningbased upon the maturity rating of each virtual object and the maturityrating of the second region.

In still yet another embodiment, the present invention provides a methodfor deploying a computing infrastructure, comprising integratingcomputer-readable code into a computing system, wherein the code incombination with the computing system is capable of performing a processfor identifying virtual objects having inappropriate content in avirtual universe (VU) having one or more regions, the VU having virtualobjects, each of the virtual objects having content, the processcomprising: rating each virtual object with a maturity rating based uponthe content of each virtual object, wherein the maturity rating for eachvirtual object is generated upon initial creation of each virtualobject; tagging each virtual object with the maturity rating; receivinga plurality of maturity ratings for each virtual object from a set ofavatars within the VU; tagging each virtual object with an updatedmaturity rating; monitoring movement of each virtual object within theVU; scanning an inventory of the avatar to determine the maturity ratingof each virtual object in response to a movement of the avatar from afirst region of the one or more regions having a first associatedmaturity level to a second region of the one or more regions having asecond associated maturity level; and determining whether to restrictmovement of each virtual object of the inventory to the second region byenforcing a policy restricting movement of a rated virtual objectbetween regions, the determining based upon the maturity rating of eachvirtual object and the maturity rating of the second region.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of this invention will be more readilyunderstood from the following detailed description of the variousaspects of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a data processing system suitable for implementing anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a network for implementing an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an illustrative embodiment of an object tag of the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 is an illustrative embodiment of a method of present invention.

FIG. 8 is an illustrative embodiment of a method of present invention.

The drawings are not necessarily to scale. The drawings are merelyschematic representations, not intended to portray specific parametersof the invention. The drawings are intended to depict only typicalembodiments of the invention, and therefore should not be considered aslimiting the scope of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present invention provide a solution for detectinginappropriate content in a virtual world environment.

Avatars in virtual worlds can have a wide range of business and socialexperiences, and such experiences are becoming more important asbusiness and social transactions are becoming common in virtual worlds,also called virtual universes, such as Second Life. In fact, thecharacteristics of a particular avatar may play important roles in suchvirtual worlds. Second Life® is a privately owned 3-D virtual world,made publicly available in 2003 by Linden Research, Inc. (commonlyreferred to as Linden Lab). The Second Life virtual world is computedand managed by a large array of servers that are owned and maintained byLinden Lab. The Second Life client program provides its users (referredto as residents) with tools to view, navigate, and modify the SecondLife world and participate in its virtual economy. Social and businessinteractions are important in Second Life, and these interactionsinclude resident interactions in both personal and business meetings.

With the growing popularity of virtual worlds and the influx of newresidents of all ages and dispositions, it is important to have controlsin place so as not to expose inappropriate or offensive content tojuveniles or to adults who do not wish to view such content. There is aneed for a system and method to identify such items and prohibit thecarrying or using of such items outside of mature areas and regions.

At least one embodiment of the present invention may provide a systemfor identifying mature and otherwise inappropriate content and objectsin a virtual world, and, more particularly, in regions or areas of avirtual world where such content is not permitted.

Another embodiment of the present invention may provide multiple methodsfor determining whether or not specific virtual world content andobjects are appropriate in specific virtual worlds, regions, and areas.

A system for implementing the present invention, such as System 100, mayhave a data processing system, such as Data Processing System 102 shownin FIG. 1, suitable for storing and/or executing program code of thepresent invention, may include a computer system, such as ComputerSystem 104, having at least one processing unit (Processing Unit 106)coupled directly or indirectly to memory elements (Memory 110) through asystem bus, such as System Bus 112. Memory 110 may include local memory(RAM 130) employed during actual execution of the program code, bulkstorage (Storage 118), and cache memories (Cache 132) that providetemporary storage of at least some program code in order to reduce thenumber of times code must be retrieved from Storage 118 duringexecution. Input/output or I/O devices (such as Display 120, and otherexternal devices (External Devices 116), including but not limited tokeyboards, pointing devices, etc.)) may be coupled to Computer System104 either directly or through intervening I/O ports or controllers (I/OInterface(s) 114). Network adapter(s) (Network Adapter 138) may provideaccess to external networks.

FIG. 2 illustrates a networked system, such as System 200 to enable adata processing system (Data Processing Unit 202) to be coupled throughnetwork connection(s) (Network Connection 206, 208, 216, 218) to otherdata processing systems (Data Processing Unit 204), remote printers(Printer 212) and/or storage devices (Storage 214) through interveningprivate and/or public network(s) (Network 210).

A system 300 for implementing the present invention is shown in FIG. 3having a virtual universe (VU 301) that may have a VU server, such as VUServer 307. VU Server 307 may be assigned one or more regions of landwithin VU 301, such as Region 302 and Region 303. VU Server 307 may beassigned other regions as well.

One region, such as Region 302, may be dedicated to mature materialwhile another region, such as Region 303, may be dedicated to neutral orfamily-related matter. Parents, for instance, may want to exclude theirchildren from the mature regions, such as Region 302.

VU Server 307 may include: a VU processing unit, such as VU ProcessingUnit 305, for providing processing function, a VU memory, such as VUMemory 306, for storing information about VU 301 and activities andavatars within Region 302 and Region 303, and Object Management unit 311for managing the objects within the VU. VU 301 may further have one ormore avatars, such as Avatars 304 a, 304 b, 304 c, 304 d. There may beany number of avatars. The avatars may be able to communicate with oneanother, with VU stores, such as VU Stores 308, with VU processing unit305 or with VU memory 306 or with other assets or objects (such asavatar attachments, vehicles, buildings, furniture, sculpture or otheritems) in VU 301 via a communications channel, such as CommunicationsChannel 310. The avatars may be considered to be VU residents.Alternatively, a “resident” may be considered the human owner of theavatar. A resident may be, for instance, child or an adult.

VU Stores 308 (308 a, 308 b, 308 c) may have Items 312 for sale toAvatars 304 a, 304 b, 304 c, 304 d. Items or Objects 312 may be real orvirtual. A real item or object may be a car or a motorcycle, forexample. A virtual item or object may be anything from clothing for theavatar or a dental chart of the resident. The system allows an avatar(such as Purchaser 322) to purchase a real or a virtual item or good.Purchased items may be stored in the avatar's inventory (Inventory 320).

Region 302 and Region 303 may be virtual areas of “land” within VU 301assigned to VU Server 307. Avatars 304 a, 304 b, 304 c, 304 d may movebetween Regions 302, 303 as indicated by Movement arrow 313 or mayteleport between Regions 302, 303 as indicated by Teleport arrow 314.

As shown in FIG. 3, VU Server 307 is assigned Region 302 and Region 303.For these assigned regions, VU Server 307 may be assigned to performcalculations for activities within these assigned regions. Activitiesinclude, but are not limited to, identifying and describing the thencurrent geometry of the visible region for each resident or avatar,transmitting required textures for region rendering, streaming mediasuch as music or video and transitioning residents or avatars to/fromother VU servers as residents move between regions. It may also managethe movement of virtual objects and avatars in and out of its assignedregions.

As discussed, virtual worlds contain regions and areas that arespecifically designed for adults who are interested in a variety ofmature subject matters. In such regions, it is possible for an avatar topurchase content and objects that are only suitable for interestedadults, for instance, Region 302 may be one such region, and the contentand objects purchased there should not be taken into neutral orfamily-friendly regions and areas, such as Region 303. Such itemsinclude objects that may be morally offensive such as items of aprurient nature or those that depict gang association and the like, somemay be audibly offensive such as music with explicit lyrics, whileothers may be visually offensive such as inappropriate clothing,appearance, gestures, and actions. At least one embodiment of thepresent invention may provide a system and method to identify such itemsand prohibit the carrying or using of such items outside of mature areasand regions.

An embodiment of a system (System 400) of the present invention is shownin FIG. 4. System 400 has VU 402 having a VU server (VU Server 403). VUServer 403 may have VU Processing Unit 305 and VU Memory 405. VU Memory405 may have Object Tagging Database 404 and Policy Database 405. ObjectTagging Database 404 may be used by VU Server 403 to store the objecttags of those objects within the VU that have been tagged. PolicyDatabase 405 may be used by VU Server 403 to store the policy orpolicies to be used to tag the objects within the VU and to be used toidentify prohibited actions within the VU, such as moving a maturetagged object from a mature region to a family-friendly region. A policymay be a taxonomy based policy or it may be a folksonomy based policy,for example. Folksonomy (also known as collaborative tagging, socialclassification, social indexing, and social tagging) is the practice andmethod of collaboratively creating and managing tags to annotate andcategorize content. VU Memory 405 may further have a Ballot Box 412 forreceiving and storing votes from avatars or residents on the ratings ofobjects when the policy is a folksonomy based policy.

VU Server 403 may further have Object Management 311 for managing theobjects within the VU. Object Management 311 may have Rating Unit 410for examining the objects and, using the selected policy, providing arating to each of the objects. Example ratings are “General”, “Teen” and“Adult”. Object Management 311 may further have Tagging Unit 406 fortagging each object with the rating provided by Rating Unit 410. The tagfor each object may be stored in Object Tagging Database 404. ObjectManagement 311 may further have Object Monitor 414 that monitors eachobject within the VU to track, for example, the object's movement withinthe VU or within regions of the VU. VU Server 403 may further haveSecurity Scanner 416 whose role is to scan objects at the boundaries ofregions or areas within the VU. For instance, at a boundary between afamily-oriented region and a mature region, the security scanner mayscan objects trying to move between the two regions. If, for instance,an object having a mature rating is attempting to move from the matureregion to the family-oriented region, the security scanner would scanthe object, identify it as mature rated, and notify Enforcement Module420 to prohibit the movement to the family-oriented region. NotificationModule 418 may provide notice to the object owner or, e.g., the avatarthat is attempting to move the object, that the movement is prohibited.Life Cycle Tracker 422 may track the life of the object so that, ifthere are changes to the object during its life, the object can bere-rated, if necessary. Further, the object rating may have apredetermined life span (rating life) such that Life Cycle Tracker 422may track the rating so that the object may be re-rated at theappropriate time.

A first method (Method 500) as shown in FIG. 5 employed by the presentinvention illustrates the use of virtual object tagging foridentification. A virtual object may be anything in the virtualuniverse. In a preferred embodiment, it begins at 502 and, at 504, anauthoritative body agrees upon a standardized object rating system suchthat similar virtual world objects and content would carry the samerating regardless of the specific virtual environment. This would bevery similar to the way that a movie ratings agency places ratings onmovies, based on agreed upon standards, where, regardless of thecountry, state, or city, the movie ratings agency rating is theauthoritative rating. Such virtual object ratings could be general innature and cover broad categories such as “General, Teen, Adult, andProhibited”, could be more detailed and include specifics such as“Explicit Language”, or could combine the two to derive ratings such as“Teen-Explicit Language”. This is shown at 506. A rating of “Prohibited”may mean that the object is not permitted anywhere in the virtual world.As an example, a virtual world representing a theme park would by naturebe a family friendly virtual world and would likely prohibit many itemsthat would be permitted in certain regions or areas of virtual worldswith more diverse content.

Using this taxonomy based technique, objects and their content arescanned and are tagged at 508 with a rating according to the policy ofthe chosen rating system; the tag number identifies both the object andalso specifies the rating of the object. In one embodiment, every objectwithin or available throughout a virtual world may have an objectrating, wherein in another embodiment, only objects of mature subjectmatter may carry such ratings. Additionally, the authority for ataxonomy based rating system could be an independent governing bodycovering all virtual environments, a body governing an individual world,or a body governing lower level regions, areas, and specific locationswithin an area.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example tag (Tag 600) that may be used to tagvirtual objects. Tag 600 may have a tag number field, such as Tag Number602, that can be used to identify the object. It may also have a selleridentification (ID) field, such as Seller ID Field 604, that wouldidentify the seller of the object. Examples are “IBM”, “Second Life” and“AV”. Another field may be the location field, such as Location Field606. Location Field 606 identifies the location of the object. Forinstance, a virtual tree object would have a particular location withina virtual world. Real/Virtual Field 608 indicates whether the object isa real object or a virtual object. Object Rating Field 610 indicates therating of the object. Examples are “General”, “Teen” and “Adult”. ItemField 612 identifies the item type. Examples are “laptop”, “mp3 player”and “arm tattoo”. Details Field 614 identifies the details of theobject. Examples include “Black T60 with specific options”, “Second Lifecompatible mp3 with classic rock” and “Venus arm tattoo”.

Such a rating system may also use an emerging technique and could befolksonomy based. FIG. 8 illustrates such a method (Method 800) thatbegins at 802 for use in a folksonomy based system. While tiers ofauthority could be identical to that described in a taxonomy basedmodel, when applying a folksonomy based system, there is no centralauthority, rather, it is the community that makes decisions. With thistype of system, using a preferred embodiment with a centralized objecttagging database, every individual avatar may have the ability to ratean object (804), then, periodically, an aggregate data set would be usedto update the relational database (e.g., Object Tagging Database 404)with the latest rating consensus for a given object or content at 806.In one embodiment, every avatar in a given virtual world or region mayhave the ability to rate objects and content using Rating Unit 410. Inanother embodiment, only members (e.g., Avatars 304 b, 304 c), or VIPmembers (e.g., VIP 316) of a virtual environment (e.g., VU 301) would bejointly authoritative and non-members would have no rating authority. Inyet another embodiment, all residents could vote, but the members' andVIP member's votes may carry more weight. The objects are then taggedwith the ratings at 808.

In either the case of a taxonomy or folksonomy based rating system, theinitial rating of an object must be established. In one embodiment, thisinitial rating is assigned by the creator or introducer of an object.Using a taxonomy based model, the creator (e.g., Creator 318) shouldadhere to the established standards, whereas, one could use subjectivejudgment in rating an object or content in a folksonomy based system. Ina similar embodiment, the purchaser or owner, rather than the creator ofan object, would be able to set a new initial rating.

A hybrid embodiment of this invention using a tagging basedimplementation might use a combination of methods whereby agreed uponobjective taxonomy based ratings may be used for a given set of objectsand content, while other more subjective objects and content may berated using a folksonomy based system.

Using any of these tagging methods, individually or jointly, an avatar'sinventory (e.g., Inventory 320) and appearance could be scanned for tagsat key moments in time such as at log-in time, when rendering a newappearance, while passing between regional boundaries, prior to or afterteleportation, and when buying, selling, or trading objects or content.Based on the results of such scans, an avatar may be denied access orface other penalties. The following methods may be used in a taggingsystem:

Objects may be tagged by value, class, or rating (based on context)determined by location of the object's initial acquisition. For example,an object purchased (obtained) in a virtual candy store might have arating more generally acceptable whereas an object purchased in an adultnovelty store would be rated as more restrictive. The objectclassification/rating could be sticky and follow the object through itsnormal life-cycle. The object classification/rating may controlinclusion into new sources of acquisition, for example, re-marketing theobject in a new venue.

Object classification/rating could be tracked and modified through theobject's life cycle. An object's rating and value may change through theobject's life cycle. For example, material that was once restricted maybe downgraded to a lower restriction level. Also, by tracking thehistory of an object's classification/rating, initial acquisition point,security, marketing, usage patterns, and other demographics could berecorded and aggregated. An analogy would be a gun used in crime, wherethe gun is tagged with its history including the initial acquisitionpoint. Also, by tracking history, marketing and other information couldbe aggregated such as objects of class X have and n % chance of endingup in locations of class Y.

Patterns of movements of sensitive objects, both into and out ofauthorized locations as well as attempts to enter unauthorizedlocations, could be determined through statistical means. Alarms couldbe produced when specific patterns achieve a high level of confidence.An example might be when a particular avatar's ID object attempts togain entrance to an unauthorized location within a given frequency/timepattern, or when this pattern changes abruptly. Objectclassification/rating may need privacy components to protect users whilegiving access of aggregated patterns to interested parties. Patterns ofmovements may be used for a number of purposes including securitymonitoring (determining security threats), value changes for objectclasses, and touch points of object classes. These patterns may be usedby object developers to improve designs.

Object classification and rating may be structured in a hierarchy withcommon characteristics for each level in the hierarchy. For example,media sources (video, magazines, CD's, etc.) may be classified or ratedby level of acceptability based on age, as mentioned before whereGeneral, Teen, and Adult would be different levels. The hierarchyprovides a structured relationship between levels and the ability togroup objects and location access permission by level and adjust levelratings in a relative fashion.

Another embodiment of the present invention may utilize public voting toestablish or modify class or rating of objects. It allows that ratingscan be automatically modified based on popular use. For example,Victorian values are mostly obsolete today, not by legislation orplanning, but by popular convention. Adjustments to ratings may be madebased on similar popular use/convention for object classes or therelative shifting of levels. (This is shown in FIG. 8.)

Another embodiment could use speaker identification (SIV) to verifyidentify of object recipient. Voice identification detection is a simplemeans of identification for fully interactive 3-D virtual environments.Speech processed in the background and identify determined and verified.Identity check established and permission determined as part of objectacquisition.

In additional to tagging based methods, the invention may optionallydeploy optical character recognition technology (OCR). OCR technology iscapable of interpreting both hand written and type set text images.Using OCR, any documents or objects containing text could be scanned andreviewed for keywords that indicate prohibited content or objects. Thepresent invention could use OCR independently, or in conjunction withthe other methods described.

The present invention may utilize media scanning techniques forscanning, extracting, and evaluating text, visual images, and audiostored in all current media formats. All inventory carried by an avatar,and the image of the avatar itself, could be scanned and analyzed.Keywords and key shapes could be used to determine undesirable objectsand content.

A virtual security scanner (416) could be located at a locationentrance, akin to the security scanners in the airport. An avatarseeking entrance to a location would pass through the scanner and anyunauthorized objects would be detected. Additionally, in one embodiment,there may be a feature wherein an authority avatar (or person) couldregister to be alarmed if another avatar attempted acquire a restrictedobject or to transport a restricted object into a restricted area. Anexample would be a parent tracking a child who attempts to purchaseadult material would be notified of the acquisition attempt.

FIG. 7 illustrates such a method, Method 700, that begins at 702. At704, the object monitor identifies an object moving from one region to asecond region or an attempt to acquired an object. At 706, the scannerscans the object's ratings and, at 708, the system examines the secondregion's or the acquiring party's requirements. At 710, it is determinedwhether the object's ratings are within the second region's/acquirer'srequirements and, if so, allows the object to move to the second regionor be acquired by acquirer at 712. If not, at 714, the object'smovement/acquisition is prohibited.

In many cases, it is very clear that an avatar is in violation of aregional policy with respect to inventory content or visual imagery. Asan example, if vulgar language is prohibited, it is very easy toestablish rules and keywords to identify such vulgar language and totake action when discovered. Searching inventory for offensive objects,however, can be more difficult. The present invention may supplement theautomated search functions already discussed with a notificationmechanism, such as Notification Module 418. With Notification Module418, when a potentially offensive object is identified, a regionalauthority may be notified and could then choose to review the identifieditem. Upon identification of any new form of offensive object, keywordsand shapes would be updated such that future occurrences of the sameitem or item type would be discovered through the automated processes.

In a preferred embodiment, an enforcement module, such as EnforcementModule 420, may be a rules based system whereby a violation of aspecific rule would have an associated action. As an example, one rulecould state that a first use of prohibited language would cause amessage to be sent to the offending avatar warning them of theconsequences of further offenses. An associated rule could be that asecond violation of the language rules by the same avatar would causethe avatar to be logged-out of the virtual environment. Additionally,there may be soft rules that would not have a specific actionassociated, rather, Notification Module 420 would be used and arepresentative of the regional authority could decide what, if any,action to take.

In yet another embodiment, the rating system may be valid betweenvirtual worlds. That is to say, that an object rating obtained in onevirtual world would be understood in another virtual world. There may belimited compatibility standards between virtual worlds, so such animplementation may require an API or service. Finally, in one embodimenta rating and scanning fee could be charged to bring inventory items fromone virtual world into another virtual world.

Through the use of the present invention, virtual environments can beused by all types of people and associated avatars while keepingunwanted content out of specified worlds, regions, and areas.

It should be understood that the present invention is typicallycomputer-implemented via hardware and/or software. As such, and clientsystems and/or servers will include computerized components as known inthe art. Such components typically include (among others), a processingunit, a memory, a bus, input/output (I/O) interfaces, external devices,etc.

While shown and described herein as a system and method for detectinginappropriate content in virtual worlds, it is understood that theinvention further provides various alternative embodiments. For example,in one embodiment, the invention provides a computer-readable/useablemedium that includes computer program code to provide a solution fortagging an object so that it can be found in a search. To this extent,the computer-readable/useable medium includes program code thatimplements each of the various process steps of the invention. It isunderstood that the terms computer-readable medium or computer useablemedium comprises one or more of any type of physical embodiment of theprogram code. In particular, the computer-readable/useable medium cancomprise program code embodied on one or more portable storage articlesof manufacture (e.g., a compact disc, a magnetic disk, a tape, etc.)and/or on one or more data storage portions of a computing device, suchas memory and/or storage system (e.g., a fixed disk, a read-only memory,a random access memory, a cache memory, etc.).

In another embodiment, the invention provides a computer-implementedmethod for detecting inappropriate content in virtual worlds or inregions of virtual worlds, or virtual universes. In this case, acomputerized infrastructure can be provided and one or more systems forperforming the process steps of the invention can be obtained (e.g.,created, purchased, used, modified, etc.) and deployed to thecomputerized infrastructure. To this extent, the deployment of a systemcan comprise one or more of (1) installing program code on a computingdevice, such as computer system from a computer-readable medium; (2)adding one or more computing devices to the computer infrastructure; and(3) incorporating and/or modifying one or more existing systems of thecomputer infrastructure to enable the computerized infrastructure toperform the process steps of the invention.

In another embodiment, the invention provides a business method thatperforms the process steps of the invention on a subscription,advertising, and/or fee basis. That is, a service provider, such as asolution integrator, could offer to provide a solution for tagging andexternalizing the tag for a real or virtual object in a virtual world.In this case, the service provider can create, maintain, support, etc.,a computer infrastructure that performs the process steps of theinvention for one or more customers. In return, the service provider canreceive payment from the customer(s) under a subscription and/or feeagreement and/or the service provider can receive payment from the saleof advertising content to one or more third parties.

As used herein, it is understood that the terms “program code” and“computer program code” are synonymous and mean any expression, in anylanguage, code or notation, of a set of instructions intended to cause acomputing device having an information processing capability to performa particular function either directly or after either or both of thefollowing: (a) conversion to another language, code or notation; and/or(b) reproduction in a different material form. To this extent, programcode can be embodied as one or more of: an application/software program,component software/a library of functions, an operating system, a basicI/O system/driver for a particular computing and/or I/O device, and thelike.

The foregoing description of various aspects of the invention has beenpresented for purposes of illustration and description. It is notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise formdisclosed, and obviously, many modifications and variations arepossible. Such modifications and variations that may be apparent to aperson skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scopeof the invention as defined by the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for identifying virtual objects havinginappropriate content in a virtual universe (VU) having one or moreregions, the VU having virtual objects, each of the virtual objectshaving content, the method comprising: rating each virtual object with amaturity rating based upon the content of each virtual object, whereinthe maturity rating for each virtual object is generated upon initialcreation of each virtual object; tagging each virtual object with thematurity rating; receiving a plurality of maturity ratings for eachvirtual object from a set of avatars within the VU; tagging each virtualobject with an updated maturity rating; monitoring movement of eachvirtual object within the VU; scanning an inventory of the avatar todetermine the maturity rating of each virtual object in response to amovement of the avatar from a first region of the one or more regionshaving a first associated maturity level to a second region of the oneor more regions having a second associated maturity level; anddetermining whether to restrict movement of each virtual object of theinventory to the second region by enforcing a policy restrictingmovement of a rated virtual object between regions, the determiningbased upon the maturity rating of each virtual object and the maturityrating of the second region.
 2. The method as defined in claim 1,further comprising selecting a rating system.
 3. The method as definedin claim 2, further comprising selecting a taxonomy based rating system.4. The method as defined in claim 2, further comprising selecting afolksonomy based rating system.
 5. The method as defined in claim 1,wherein the set of avatars comprises members and non-members, the methodfurther comprising allowing the members to rate each virtual object andprohibiting the non-members from rating each virtual object.
 6. Themethod as defined in claim 1, wherein the one or more avatars comprisesmembers and non-members, the method further comprising weighting ratingsfrom the members more heavily than ratings from the non-members.
 7. Themethod as defined in claim 1, wherein the first region is a matureregion having one or more mature objects and the second region is afamily-oriented region, the method further comprising: prohibitingmovement of one or more mature objects from the first region to thesecond region; and responding to a plurality of attempts at prohibitedmovement with an increasingly severe response.
 8. The method as definedin claim 1, wherein each objects is acquired in a location, the methodfurther comprising tagging the virtual objects based on the location. 9.The method as defined in claim 1, wherein each virtual object has a lifecycle, the method further comprising: storing a maturity rating historyof each virtual object in an object tagging database; and tracking eachvirtual object through the respective life cycles of each virtual objectbased on the maturity rating history of each virtual object.
 10. Asystem for identifying virtual objects having inappropriate content in avirtual universe (VU), the VU having virtual objects, the VU furtherhaving one or more regions, the system comprising: a VU processing unit;a memory unit operably associated with the VU processing unit; an objectmanagement tool storable in the memory unit and executable by the VUprocessing unit, the object management tool comprising: a rating unitconfigured for rating each virtual object with a maturity rating basedupon a content of each virtual object, wherein the maturity rating foreach virtual object is generated upon initial creation of each virtualobject; a tagging unit configured for: tagging each virtual object withthe maturity rating; receiving a plurality of maturity ratings for eachvirtual object from a set of avatars within the VU; and tagging eachvirtual object with an updated maturity rating; an object monitorconfigured for monitoring movement of each virtual object within the VU;a security scanner configured for scanning an inventory of the avatar todetermine the maturity rating of each virtual object in response to amovement of the avatar from a first region of the one or more regionshaving a first associated maturity level to a second region of the oneor more regions having a second associated maturity level; and anenforcement module configured for determining whether to restrictmovement of each virtual object of the inventory to the second region byenforcing a policy restricting movement of a rated virtual objectbetween regions, the determining based upon the maturity rating of eachvirtual object and the maturity rating of the second region.
 11. Thesystem as defined in claim 10, the object management tool furthercomprising a notification module configured to provide notification ifone of the virtual objects violates the policy.
 12. The system asdefined in claim 11, wherein each of the one or more virtual objects hasa rating life, the object management tool further comprising a lifecycle tracker configured for tracking the rating life of each of the oneor more virtual objects.
 13. The system as defined in claim 10, whereinthe set of avatars comprises members and non-members, the system furthercomprising a ballot box configured for receiving votes from the memberson the plurality of maturity ratings from the set of avatars, the ballotbox further configured to at least one of: prohibit the non-members fromrating each virtual object or weighting ratings from the members moreheavily than ratings from the non-members.
 14. The system as defined inclaim 10, wherein the first region is a mature region having one or moremature objects and the second region is a family-oriented region, theenforcement module further configured for: prohibiting movement of oneor more mature objects from the first region to the second region; andresponding to a plurality of attempts at prohibited movement with anincreasingly severe response.
 15. The system as defined in claim 10, therating further configured to select a rating system, wherein the ratingsystem comprises at least one of: a taxonomy based rating system and afolksonomy based rating system.
 16. A computer-readable storage device,wherein the computer-readable storage device is not a transitory signal,storing computer instructions, which when executed, enables a systemcomprising a processing unit, a memory, a bus, and one or moreinput/output (I/O) interfaces to implement a method for identifyingvirtual objects having inappropriate content in a virtual universe (VU)having one or more regions, the VU having virtual objects, each of thevirtual objects having content, the computer instructions comprising:rating each virtual object with a maturity rating based upon the contentof each virtual object, wherein the maturity rating for each virtualobject is generated upon initial creation of each virtual object;tagging each virtual object with the maturity rating; receiving aplurality of maturity ratings for each virtual object from a set ofavatars within the VU; tagging each virtual object with an updatedmaturity rating; monitoring movement of each virtual object within theVU; scanning an inventory of the avatar to determine the maturity ratingof each virtual object in response to a movement of the avatar from afirst region of the one or more regions having a first associatedmaturity level to a second region of the one or more regions having asecond associated maturity level; and determining whether to restrictmovement of each virtual object of the inventory to the second region byenforcing a policy restricting movement of a rated virtual objectbetween regions, the determining based upon the maturity rating of eachvirtual object and the maturity rating of the second region.
 17. Thecomputer-readable storage device as defined in claim 16, wherein thecomputer instructions further comprise using at least one of: a taxonomybased rating system and a folksonomy based rating system.
 18. Thecomputer-readable storage device as defined in claim 16, wherein the setof avatars comprises members and non-members, wherein the computerinstructions further comprise allowing the members to rate the one ormore virtual objects and at least one of: prohibiting the non-members torate the one or more virtual objects or weighting ratings from themembers more heavily than ratings from the non-members.
 19. Thecomputer-readable storage device as defined in claim 16, wherein thefirst region is a mature region having one or more mature objects andthe second region is a family-oriented region, the computer instructionsfurther comprising: prohibiting movement of the one or more matureobjects from the first region to the second region; and responding to aplurality of attempts at prohibited movement with an increasingly severeresponse.
 20. The computer-readable storage device as defined in claim16, wherein each virtual object has a life cycle, the computerinstructions further comprising: storing a maturity rating history ofeach virtual object in an object tagging database; and tracking eachvirtual object through the respective life cycles of each virtual objectbased on the maturity rating history of each virtual object.